Chapter Forty-Three
Dulce
Un A?o – Sebastián Yatra, Reik
Can feet glide?
Mine sure feel like they do as I head toward the throne room. Alessand informed me that she’d be there. Raev came over and kidnapped Vex to go visit Raev’s abuelita.
As much as I’d love to meet her, it felt like a bonding experience they wanted to have without me. And who am I to stop two of my life partners from scheming together?
There’s a bubble of joy inside me, sparkling like glitter and popping like those candies that Di likes from the human realm.
Everything feels right. I’ve found my mates. I’ve found happiness.
Until the summer ends, at least.
My pursuit halts as soon as I make it through the big doors. Vera is pacing back and forth demanding things all while her eyes are widened, frazzled as if something is wrong.
The air in here is charged, almost with nerves? Or maybe it’s the bond between Vex and her, which now includes Raev and me. She taps her nails against her thorn covered arms, fidgeting as someone chats with her.
It’s like she doesn’t see them, her eyes either skating around or zoning out.
Unable to watch her unravel for longer, I head her way. My body doesn’t seem to recognize the threat her thorns hold, because I unconsciously tap her shoulder.
She jumps, her vines immediately thrashing out. Not at me, but around her in warning as a result of Vera’s nerves.
Sliding a gentle finger over the one pointed directly at me, I pet it. It’s such a gentle caress, assessing, getting to know it.
“So beautiful,” I compliment, curving my finger around the twists, acquainting myself with them. “Protecting my beautiful queen.” It comes out like a coo, and it has Vera turning to me. The person who talked at her for several minutes silently backs away, staring at the vines still poised in their direction.
“Thank you.” Those two simple words have me breaking into a grin. She seems so shy, but with how my bond with Raev went wild, I know she’s anything but when she’s comfortable.
“What for?”
“Treating them with kindness and not fear.” She bites her lip and moves her hands, twisting them as if she’s overstimulated.
“Fear? Whatever for?” It’s a near gasp, but I’m shocked that anyone could be afraid of pure beauty. They’re the embodiment of nature. Wild, free, and protective. “They’re gorgeous.” Her cheeks darken as bashfulness creeps forward once more. The urge to reach up and touch her is nearly too much to bear. “They protect you. To me, they’re perfect.”
“I’ve never had anyone other than Raev treat them like they’re not evil.” Shock must be written all over my face because she reaches out to a vine, and it weaves around her. Starting at her wrist, it twists and glides upward, almost snake-like in movement. “They hear, smell, and taste. Each one is a part of me, but they’re also feeling. If they hurt, I hurt.”
“Like Solera,” I whisper, touching my chest to rub the ache away, remembering their agony when someone attacks trees and plucks flowers.
Her eyebrows raise and she offers a nod. “How do—”
“I spent time in the plains of your realm, connecting with Her. I could... feel you,” I attempt to explain without sounding so enthralled. “It was like my veins connected to the roots beneath the ground, guiding me and connecting me to you.” Welp, failed at keeping cool.
There’s something in her expression that has me wanting to hold her. I want there to be comfort, to take her in my arms, hold her, love her in the way we both deserve.
“Fate,” she scoffs, not at or toward me. “I’ve never been one to believe in fate, Dulce.” Her voice is forlorn, full of need, the kind that is starved and stolen from each person who doesn’t get love properly. I know its appearance well.
No longer wanting to hold myself back, I reach forward, bringing my palm to her chest. It’s careful, not too pushy. The last thing I want is for her to run from me.
It rises and falls, her lips separating as the dizzying sensation runs through my palms and to her. She pants and I follow suit, warmth consuming us both.
Our gazes connect and there’s a glimmer there—something new, festering, building a nest beneath her bones.
“You may not believe in fate, mi reina hermosa, but there’s no denying this.” Her hand covers mine, the thrumming between us intensifies with each passing breath.
“Each new thing I learn about you seems to entrance me, peach.”
Peach.
I like it.
“Please tell me more things you like,” I prod coyly, trying not to toy with my loose curls, even though the urge is real.
Her lips purse while her cheeks darken in a blush once more. From how Raev described her, she’s a conqueror—someone who takes charge and everything she desires.
“Fishing for compliments?” she teases, her eyebrow rising higher. “Because I can give you many.”
“I’m waiting,” I playfully sass, tapping my chin with one hand while keeping the other on her chest.
Her lips twitch before shifting into a full smile, and there’s nothing I want more than to see that every day for the rest of my life.
Her hand atop mine falls softly, moving to my jaw. It’s different now. The smile melts from her face and in its place is the kind of expression that tells me she’ll own every part of me by the time this summer ends in a couple weeks.
“You are insanely breathtaking,” she rasps, her voice dropping a bit. “The moment I saw you in person, I knew I wanted you to be mine.” Her grip tightens, all while my breaths come out in sharp bursts. “When Solera showed me flashes of Raev fucking you, I wanted to find him and stab him for daring to take what’s mine.”
A gasp shoots out of me as my thighs clench. She’s so goddamn attractive that I’d fall to my knees and worship her in every way.
Her vines, covered in thorns, snake down her arms and twist around my body. They’re not constricting like one would think. They’re like a hug, protecting me and offering comfort. Joining us together in such an intimate way.
“They like you,” Vera hums, leaning in. She inhales deeply, her pupils dilating with the action. “And so do I.”
I bite my tongue, forcing myself not to ask her to touch me. The air around us shifts, almost suffocating me. My heart shamelessly patters, and the hand on my jaw seems almost heavy.
“Can I kiss you?”
Her nose twitches as if she’s holding back a chuckle. “You ask me to take what’s yours. Aren’t you the sweetest peach in the orchard.” It’s rhetorical but the need to please her has me nodding frantically.